Questions and Hypotheses

One of the ways that you can tell if you have written an "answerable" experimental question is to try and reduce the
question down into variables (see "variables" module).

In psychology experiments reported in scholarly journals the form of these questions and/or hypotheses varies. For
example, let's take two fairly simple variables: arousal level and test performance. First of all, let's contrast an experimental
hypothesis with a question:

 hypothesis: I predict that arousal and test performance will be significantly related.
 question: What is the relationship between test performance and arousal?

Another way of differentiating among experimental hypotheses is to contrast directional and non-directional hypothesis. A
directional hypothesis is more specific, in that the experimenter predicts, not only that a specific relationship will exist, but,
further, the direction of that relationship. For example:

 non-directional: I predict that arousal and test performance will be significantly related.
 directional: I predict that, as arousal increases, test performance will decrease.

Finally, we can also differentiate hypotheses that imply causality vs those that are relational. A directional and causal
hypothesis is the most specific of those discussed so far. relational: I predict that, as arousal increases, test performance
will decrease.

 causal: I predict that anxiety causes/leads to poor performance on tests. (As we'll see in future virtual lectures, in
order to truly address causal hypotheses, a more stringent research design possessing certain characteristics is
required).

As you might have already surmised we can think of these different types of experimental questions/hypotheses on a
continuum from least specific/stringent to most specific and stringent.

Further, the greater the specificity, the less likely we are to find our predicted results just by chance. This is why, for
example, we can be more confident of research results that are consistent with a causal-directional hypothesis, than is the
case of findings that are consistent with a non-directional hypothesis. More specific and stringent predictions are used more
frequently in areas in which a great deal is already known, while less stringent predictions and questions are more common
in "exploratory" studies, in areas where a great deal is not known.

We can actually think of these aspects of research questions and hypotheses as three variables, each with two levels, as we
discussed in the variables tutorials. What's more we can examine the relationship among these "variables" by viewing them
in the form of two, two by two (2 x 2) matrices. This is illustrated below with example questions and hypotheses based on
the two variables "stress" and "health". However, it is not possible to come up with an example for each cell of these
matrices because it is not possible to propose a non-directional and causal hypothesis. One of the preconditions for
establishing causality is directionality. In order for one event to cause another event, the former must precede the latter in
time.

Questions

relational causal
non-directional Are stress and health related? Causal hypotheses must be directional.
Directional Are stress and health inversely related, such that Does increased levels of stress lead to decreased levels of
health decreases as stress increases? health?

Hypotheses

relational causal
non-directional I predict that stress and health are related. Causal hypotheses must be directional.
Directional I predict that stress and health are inversely related, I predict that increased levels of stress will lead to decreased
such that health decreases as stress increases. levels of health.

Psychology World was created by Richard Hall in 1998 and is covered by a creative commons (by-nc) copyright

https://web.mst.edu/~psyworld/questions.htm